If you can swing a bit more like around $150, there are better options available such as the HP EX920, HP EX 950, ADATA SX8200 Pro, Samsung SM961, Samsung SM981, the PM961/981, Toshiba XG5, Toshiba XG6, the silicon motion SM2262 based Muskin Pilot MKNSSDPL1TB-D8, various Phison E12 based models such as the Inland Professional 1 TB X4, the Team Group MP34, the Silicon Power SU001TBP34A80M28AB, Addlink S70 1TB, Sabrent 1tb Rocket NVME.

I'd also list the WD 1TB Black and the 970 Evo/Plus but they are still too high in price for 1TB model.

The difference between the 660P and the high end is only about $40 and the high end stuff is substantially faster.

If you can swing a bit more like around $150, there are better options available such as the HP EX920, HP EX 950, ADATA SX8200 Pro, Samsung SM961, Samsung SM981, the PM961/981, Toshiba XG5, Toshiba XG6, the silicon motion SM2262 based Muskin Pilot MKNSSDPL1TB-D8, various Phison E12 based models such as the Inland Professional 1 TB X4, the Team Group MP34, the Silicon Power SU001TBP34A80M28AB, Addlink S70 1TB, Sabrent 1tb Rocket NVME.

I'd also list the WD 1TB Black and the 970 Evo/Plus but they are still too high in price for 1TB model.

The difference between the 660P and the high end is only about $40 and the high end stuff is substantially faster.

@TheMadDutchDude and @Vario The OEM Samsung's doesn't get any firmware updates from Samsung you have to get it from OEM vendor like Lenovo, HP and so which means you have to do that in OEM system.

I got a Intel Pro 2500 Series SSD in my Dell laptop no issues with this one and I have customers at work with Intel 660p's in their Lenovo laptops no slow down issues with the 256GB model they use even filled up over 80%,

I usually check the changelog for firmware updates some address codes, others compatibility and so on. Same for my motherboard in my main rig it's not all just support for new cpu generation or update the QVL list for ram.

I'm looking for a 1TB M2 drive for gaming myself. While it sounds like i've got the same affliction to HP as you do but after looking at the reviews the HP EX 920 is seems to be the best bet. Reviews are a whole lot better than the intel and everything else i've found at 150 bucks. Newegg has the Open box for 120 bucks.

And yes i checked to see if Tech Power Up had anything on the EX920 first.

I have the Intel model SSDPEKNW010T8X1 It comes in a brown box, but has an Intel retail box inside the brown box. It is confusing. Warranty card said 5 years warranty. Let me know if you need to know anything else.

660p is a peculiar drive.
The price is banging,it's cheaper than sata ssds here,and with it's three-level caching it's a very good performer.just beware that once you fill it up the qlc will perform very,very poorly.
imo it's still it's better to buy a 2tb 660p than 1tb higher-tier drive,the price being very similar,but I wouldn't fill it up past 1.5TB.
Check the price of P1 too,it works the same way and the price should be similar,but crucial is a slightly faster drive.

I was going to pull the trigger on the open box ex920 (they had 5 or more) but it's gone. I'll save up for another month or so and get something. Maybe the Adata xpg sx8200 pro, it's 2nd gen and a pretty good price.

like I said,660p can be a great budget shot if it's available at sata ssd prices,but know the limitations too.it's not supposed to be a ssd for workstations.but for home/gaming rigs it's great value.

though I'd say the only one I'd buy is the 2tb version.double the dram cache,double the slc cache,double the dynamic "pseudo-slc" cache.much better buy than e.g. a 1TB 970 evo if at similar price and not used in e.g. creators rig.

2tb has 24 gb of fixed slc cache,and as long as you keep it under 75% it stays at +50gb.
970 evo's turbowrite works the same way,though you always have samsung's excellent 3d v-nand to fall back on.
anyway,intel's solution can work exceptionally well as long as you have that headroom it keeps pace with high-end nvme in light/moderate tasks,but like I said,it's 2TB 660p or bust.
in PL 660p 2TB is 950pln while 970 evo is 1000pln.Given how you can easily keep the same performance on the 660p in regular tasks and still use 1.5TB before you see signs of slowdows makes it an excellent budget choice for home gaming rigs.
for content creation use I'd invest in a better drive though.